Maybe Ottawa isn't the first place you'd expect the genesis of 38 minutes of post-metal as intense as this, but Alaskan have done it whether because of or in spite of their surroundings. The sound on Adversity; Woe is even colder than before, and the slow-paced heavy groove never overstays its welcome. The band has found the sweet spot between all-out aggression and methodical spacing, making this the kind of experience you'll want to stick on repeat.

Overdriven bass and all-consuming drumming back up the heavy space created by guitar, furious vocals adding more percussive power than anything melodic. In fact, there's not a whole lot of melody on this whole record, instead creeping riffs echo heavy booms of a great doomsday bell. It's the imagery forged by such bleak playing that takes center-stage. Even when acoustic guitar is brought in on "Interruption" the heaviness is still there, with its slow, tense performance supported by muted drums. The fact that this segue track can maintain the intensity without any distortion is testament to just how honed-in this band's sound has become. It's black to the core, and heavy as hell.

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A ship sails towards infinity on the record's cover, surrounded by treacherous black ocean. It's pretty indicative of what you're getting into - an epic journey with nowhere to cast anchor until the very end. With tools as simple as moving back and forth between two chords, the band builds cold, dark, tension and intensity more than living up to their name.